Unlike other Easter bunnies, the Sandals Foundation’s ‘Benevolent Bunny’ this year brought school supplies and toys to close to 500 children in western Jamaica.

In an initiative dubbed the Benevolent Bunny, team members from Sandals, Beaches and Grand Pineapple in Negril, journeyed to seven schools across Westmoreland and Hanover to assist Easter cheer.

Boys and girls who were busy playing stopped to focus all their attention on the Easter bunny, his helpers, and the treats that accompanied them.

“We always get requests from parents and teachers for school supplies for needy children. We always try our best to respond to those but we figured that for Easter we would do something a little different, and instead of the usual bun and cheese and Easter egg hunts, we thought we would give them something that would serve them long after Easter has passed,” said Jervene Simpson, regional public relations manager for Sandals, Beaches and Grand Pineapple Resorts Negril.

Principal at Ricketts Street Early Childhood Institution, Velean Brown, praised the Sandals Foundation for its worthwhile contribution to her students.

“We are so appreciative. The children are very happy for the supplies and the Sandals Foundation has certainly made our Easter brighter,” she said.

The teacher was right. The children were elated.

“Come back to my school next week,” one bubbly infant, who had been entertaining the team since its arrival, yelled as the group bade goodbye.

The Sandals Foundation team in Negril plans to take the treat to other schools in the region.

“We want to continue this throughout the year. When school reopens, we will be heading into other institutions to give back, all the way up until Christmas when Santa Claus will be giving away toys and doing Christmas treats in schools and communities,” Simpson said.